It appears that Daddy O from Starr Ranch has been missing, last seen 9pm thursday. BEANS - this may very well be the last video of him bringing treats to the Mrs. Everyone is upset, Pete went up Sat night 10:40 pm or so and put some mice in the nest, against his own beliefs to let nature take course, but stated that if things were not going well, might turn off cameras this am. The cams are still on, mom went hunting also during the night. But she will not be able to handle feeding 6. Viewers asking to take 2 or 3 of the smallest to rehabbers. The policy in the past is not to interfere, so in view of impending deaths of the owlets, he may turn off the cams and resume when mom acquires a new mate. How sad, I have wonderful videos from over the years of Daddy O with the Mrs, playing tug of war with prey, getting literally kicked out of the nest by the Mrs during a spat, bonding with her, whispering sweet nothings to her, and chittering and chattering back and forth between them both. Pete said at this point he is concerned something HAS happened to Daddy O. We have been holding out hope for his return, as he went awol just at the same time mom saw oldest two swallowing prey whole, which is always a signal she is going to hunt now too. So at first I thought Dad was just "no longer in the nest" because it was his usual time to move out and keep hunting and doing "throw and go" deliveries. Apparently, not so, he is truly awol. This past week there were many "hearings" of GHO's near the nest area all throughout the week.

This has been posted on their website about the present situation. The dad is gone (probably as a result of a predator) leaving mom with 5 chicks (the youngest died within the last couple days). Sad situation for this young family.

Audubon Starr Ranch Barn OwlsFor those who have contacted the Serrano Animal and Bird Hospital/OC Bird of Prey Center please know that Starr Ranch has had a relationship with them and other professional raptor biologists for more than 20 years where together we’re doing as much as we can for raptors and raptor habitat protection. Here’s what SA+BH has to say about the current situation and I agree with their assessment:

“At present, we [Starr Ranch] are trying to provide adequate food for the remaining parent to feed the babies (not an easy feat since the nest is not readily accessible and the weather has been rough here) while field biologists are searching for nests with similar aged babies to foster. Hopefully, some of the babies will survive long enough to be transferred into an appropriate nest and fledge normally with foster parents. Removing and hand rearing the babies is not a viable option, since the babies will most likely become permanently imprinted (socialized to people) and non-releasable. They would then have to be found legal and proper housing for the rest of their lives (which can be more than 1 or 2 decades).”

I, along with several other field biologists, have already been working very hard to find another BNOW nest where some if not all of these chicks can be fostered. However, keep in mind that if we are fortunate to find a nest it cannot be one that already has a full clutch of even 4 – adding 4-5 more chicks to that would place the survival of all chicks in jeopardy.

I would like to ask that we all try to confine our comments to observations and that opinions and chat about what should be done be held. I think you all know by now that I don’t censor many comments at all on this site and I’m reluctant to start. As long as comments are respectful of others and contribute to our knowledge and understanding of these BNOWs, they’ll be allowed.

Last, the supplemental food I’ve provided these last two nights is something I’m extremely reluctant to do, notwithstanding it’s not that easy to do. Those who have been watching for the last few years know that I have said numerous times that I would not intervene – the only difference between this nest and ten’s of thousands of other nests is that we get to watch. And in this case we’re seeing what can happen when things don’t go as smoothly as we would like them to; the key word here is “we”. BNOWs and all other wildlife routinely deal with these kinds of scenarios and get though them just fine – even when death is part of the equation. I would also add that there’s a distinction between intervention and interaction. When I clean a lens, band the chicks, etc. I’m interacting with them in a way that is known to be nothing more than a short change in their routine that has no lasting affect on their overall behavior. Intervention, such as supplemental feeding, changes the outcome of their lives and affects not only them but other BNOWs and wildlife in the area. Please take a moment to consider that the death of an individual chick, and adult, or an entire clutch just might be what’s supposed to happen as part of the bigger picture.

Thanks you all for your comments, even when at times we might not agree. And those choosing to support us, an additional thanks. I’m really trying to do the best I can. Pete

Pete, the ranch manager, has been supplying supplemental feedings every night to the Owlets since the dad disappeared on January 19th. To get to the tree opening, he has to climb up a 40 foot ladder! The chat members have dubbed him the PeteZa delivery man!